Tech Review: Kygo A9/600 BT Wireless Headphones

Can the sound match the beautiful design? Read on to find out.

Before we get into this review, you can view our testing process guidelines by heading here. It outlines how we test the headphones, and what we typically look for.

The Specifics

Who: Kygo Life is the lifestyle brand of the artist Kygo.The product: Kygo A9/600 BT Headphones.What comes in the packaging: A carry case, USB cable, and 3.5mm headphone lead (just in case you want to go down the wired route).What are they selling us: "Genuine sound quality with rich bass and clear highs. A classic headphone that's comfortable to wear and has a sleek design."

The Design

The Kygo A9/600 BT headphones come in black, white, burgundy, palm, and storm grey - the latter of which was sent for us to review and can be seen in the photos above/below.

It seems pretty apt to kick this review off taking a look at the design, as it's probably the area I'd give them an A+ for. It's minimalism done to perfection, with everything working together in harmony. I love how the striking the Kygo logo is on both ears, yet somehow they stay in the background. The touch control panel on the right ear is handled beautifully, following the engraved approached of the logo.

I can't speak on the other colourways mentioned, but it's hard to imagine a nicer setup than the storm grey. The A9/600 BTs are easily up there as one of the best looking headphones on the market. I guess for the price, I'd prefer a slightly nicer carry case, but that's a minor point.

The Build and Comfort

Weighing in at 320g, they're relatively light but with a nice amount of weight in the ears. From a durability standpoint, they feel really tough - which is what you'd hope for at this price point.

My favourite part of the build is the memory foam cushioning found in the ears and the headband - which leads nicely into the comfort part of this review. The A9/600 BTs are so damn comfortable. They're certainly not on the Bose Quiet Comfort level of comfort - mainly because of the difference in weight - but they're definitely in the same conversation.

The Sound

If you're not that bothered about those specs outside of the playing time, just know that everything is fine and what it should be. But damn, can we talk about the playing time? 23 hours is incredible. Unless you have a horrible commute, it's likely that you may only have to charge these once a week. Every Sunday while you're cooking your roast dinner, you could pop these in to charge, then forget about it until the following Sunday.

We ran the headphones through our test playlist and found that they struggled a bit in the more epic moments down the stretch of Max Richter's 'On the Nature of Daylight', as the separation required to truly battle through the swells wasn't quite there. I also found a lack of aggression when paired with a song such as 'Tired of Sex' by Weezer. Rather than a punch in the face, you get more of a slap in the knee.

Where I feel these headphones truly excel is when supplied with electronic or hip-hop beats, something which is confirmed in the presets of the Kygo Sound app. Available in the App Store and on Google Play, the Kygo Sound app provides you with four presets - Bergen (Acoustic/Piano), New York (R&B/Hip-Hop), Ibiza (Electronic House) and Los Angeles (Lounge) - all of which are available by moving a circle around on the screen (it'll make sense if you look at the screenshot above). There's also an option for boosting the bass, which is terrifying when you listen to a song like 'The Hills' by The Weeknd. It essentially goes from 'Ohhh ok, that's punchy' to 'Hellllllppppppppppppp'.

I really like the app, but I feel as though it would be better if it went down the Parrot route of providing more control over the sound, rather than being chained to four presets and a bass boost.

Moving away from the app for a second, with a firm reset of the equalizer, I was pretty impressed by the way it handled Michael Jackson's 'Human Nature'. It's one of those songs that seems relatively simple on the surface, but it's actually super complex, featuring a bunch of moving parts. The separation issue I had with Max Richter seems to vanish here, with the typically sunken chimes of the left channel finding some room to breathe.

Is It Worth The Money?

For £199.99, I suspect most people would want a pair of headphones that function well across the board, but if you're into electronic music or even hip-hop, then the answer is a firm yes. The design, combined with the comfort, the playback time, and the app, makes for a pretty killer set of features.